Good, But Not Good Enough

Allow them to Disney again intensified child today will be introduced to a man that he could get into having been good. But Jesus reminded him and asked that behavior may look good, never good enough this message today is about a very good man who came to Jesus and asking for something that he needed that he felt like he needed desperately yet. When the Lord Ptolemy said no. This is how you can have this. The Bible says that he decided that really wasn't what he wanted that bad. And so he walked away the time of this message is good but not good enough. And this is the kind of passage that a person average person will read this and they'll say well that's an interesting story, but that doesn't apply to me because I just don't have the same kind of circumstances that that person has not realizing that probably the basic reason most people will meet God unprepared is for the same reason, this young man made the mistake that he made someone you turn if you will, to Matthew chapter 19 and wants to begin reading in the 16th verse, and the whole one came to him and said teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life and he said to why you asking me about what is good. There is only one who is good, but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.

He said to him, which ones and Jesus said you shall not commit murder, you shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness. Honor your father and mother, and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.

The young man said to him, all these things I have kept one of my still lacking. Jesus said to him, if you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven and come, follow me.

But when the young man heard this statement, he went away green for he was one who owned much property and Jesus said to his disciples, truly I say to you, it is hard for rich man the end of the kingdom of heaven. And again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. And when the disciples heard this, they were astonished and said, then who can be saved and looking upon them. Jesus said to them with man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. Now we have to ask is what is the question that he asked what's the nature of this question when he came to Jesus. He said teacher a good teacher, what must I do to obtain eternal life. What he was in essence is saying. Was this, he was saying. What else can I do other than all the other good things that I have done to obtain eternal life and the emphasis here that I want you notice is that which is so very important.

What good thing shall I do now when he is talking about eternal life. What was he referring to that is, while eternal life is forever and ever and ever. It is also a quality of life. So what kind of quality as it was somebody's as well as religious life.

It's a life of doing good. It's a life of righteousness notes. More than that eternal life. Listen, is the life of God. When you receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior is what happens when you receive Christ as your Savior by faith, believing that Jesus Christ is the son of God who went to Calgary and died for your sins and you accept him as your personal savior you receive. At that moment the very life of God because the Scripture says in Romans. If you have not the spirit of God you none of his. So when we talk about salvation were not talking about something you just believe salvation is God coming to live on the inside of you in the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit, who is one of the persons of the Godhead.

God the father, God the son God the Holy Spirit who make up the Godhead, which is one so every believer is indwelt by God so that it's very clear that eternal life is a gift of God which comes as a result of our placing our trust in the person of Jesus Christ. So the great question is this what must and what can I do to obtain eternal life. The second question.

The second thing is, what is this great deception. Well, this young man is like so many people. He's asking this question. It's the wrong question but is asking the best he knows what can I do to obtain eternal life and the thing that so important about this pastor. Scripture is not what this man was Richard not but what is it that he's experiencing here. He's experiencing the same deception he sees eternal life.

As a result of something that he can do. There must be one more thing he can do in life, something he can do in life, in order to obtain eternal life and so here's the great deception the great deception is this that man can perform in such a fashion in some way as to do something in order that God will see what he's gone approve of him and give him eternal life that is a great deception as I can perform and a certain way and God will accept me on the basis of my performance that is life's greatest deception that is exactly the way most people approach God they approach him with the idea that if I do something right or do enough right and if I get the wrong things in my life and surely God will accept me on the basis of my conduct of my performance. That is a natural normal way that they come to God and so what we have to ask is what's wrong with that.

I want to say what's wrong that first of all, what's wrong with it.

Is this it bypasses it, it ignores the basic problem that we all have the basic problem is this that all of us came in this world.

The sinful nature been away from God and the Bible says that all of us have sinned against God. He says all of us have sinned against God, and come short of being what God wants us to be doing the thing God wants us to do, and fulfilling the purpose that God wants us to fulfill. Sin is a debt that we owe. Sin is against Almighty God and so we say well you know if I can straighten out a few things in my life. Surely God's going to accept me, let me ask a question.

Suppose you own the store. The small town. Let's say you own big department store in a small town so I come in I say well you know can I buy something on credit sure I trust you, you the pastor. No problem.

Well, so I will, of about $5000. This guy keeps trusting me and trusting minutes of the $5000 as someone that will convict :-) as a hot human or you don't love my coming in the day. Well, hello :-( is starting today. Paying cash from this day own absolutely cash. Don't worry about a thing. Every time you see me coming know I got greenbacks in my hand.

I'm coming with one in my hand. Will that would be fun. Let me ask a question with my beginning to pay cash, erase my debt if you own the story would write absolutely would not use it what you will pay cash is fine.

But what about $5000 you only so his was happy when the palace is a list number change my life.

I will cut out the bad things I was not going to church by comparable give little money I'm restarting the problem to start praying. I'm restarting a better friend. The people been unable to work harder on the start being without the kind of person.

I believe God wants me to be with a problem. That is what about all those years of sin, my friend, your good works cannot erase the sin in your life. You see good works does not eliminate sin. The only thing that can take care of sin is death is a Benoit and I thought Jesus often life. He does the only thing that can take care of sin is death.

That's why the Bible says without the shedding of blood. The blood of Jesus.

There is no forgiveness of sin.

Now think about this.

If a person brother good works in the Bible says it cannot, for by grace you say through play that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God not of works lest any man should boast.

That's Ephesians 289.

In Titus 35. He says not by works of righteousness which we done, but according to his mercy he saved us, if I could begin to be good and do good and start trying to keep the commandments and straighten out some things in my life that one out and say will God's going accept me on the basis of that and what I'm saying is I can be made acceptable by God and ignore the crucifixion, ignore the cross is the crucifixion of Jesus that makes it possible for you and me to be forgiven of our sin. There isn't anything that is ever happened on the face of this earth never will happen. Never can happen that can deal with arrows sin problem, but the cross of Jesus Christ. The issue here is this man is suffering from the great deception he believes that somehow there is something else. What else must I do besides all the other things I have done and made me so good, in order to be accepted in the house of God and the answer that question is absolutely nothing. The great deception and the tragedy is most people believe that is the basis of their acceptance performance. The great deception is this believing that somehow I can perform in such a fashion that I will be made acceptable in the eyes of God.

Based on my performance. The great deception then you say well what is the great solution will here is indeed the great solution.

Well that three misconceptions that you and I could come to in this passage. The first one is just this and that is is a person saved. I cannot a person be saved by keeping the 10 Commandments because it sounds like it when Jesus said here. He said well if you wish to enter into life, what you do is you keep the commandments of us, not us.

Listen one of the misconceptions is that a person saved by keeping the 10 Commandments unanswered question how many of you have kept them all because nowhere in the Bible does it say that you are saved by keeping the 10 Commandments.

In fact, we can't in fact that's not even while they were given the 10 Commandments were not given in order to get a say the 10 Commandments were given to us to reveal our sinfulness, we can keep them.

Second, that the 10 Commandments were given to us as listen a a a moral law by which society can exist that you think about it when you eliminate the whole moral law of God, what you said, here's a society it's going to exist no accountability to God. What we don't realize is this. When we think that way when you will have no accountability to God then you begin to do what you begin to miss treat each other and so society that doesn't want God and refuses to recognize our accountability to God does what devours one another wasn't given for salvation. Given the show as a listen.

How do we know how sinful we can file we are.

You take the 10 Commandments with the newspaper headlines and the television, radio, headlines, and put down side-by-side and you will conclude we are a nation of evil people. Does that mean everybody's able note many multitudes millions of godly people in this nation. No question about it, but our society that is that the world system operating in our nation. Every other nation is a world system that operates minus God, the 10 Commandments are all objectionable to them because what because it limits their evil conduct and so what we decide that we can raise a generation of children and what we've said is forget the 10 Commandments you want to live by these moral laws.

Now we've got problems that we cannot solve. You throw billions of dollars to moral problems and they will not be solved because you cannot ignore God and have any kind of a decent society where the issue here is not keeping the 10 Commandments for salvation. That's when the misconceptions a second misconception is this, and that is that sacrificing everything you have been giving it away will make you a Christian. Listen to what Jesus said to value say well is that not what it says but what's this young man said to him, all these things I have One of my still lacking. Jesus said to them, if you wish to be complete, irritable, and eternal life. You can sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven and come, follow me well know that sounds like that you get eternal life by the what sacrificing everything that you have and turning it over to someone who doesn't have anything the idea of laying down everything I have, and giving to the poor will get me say this a contradiction. The whole of the whole issue of what grace is about that God saves the basis of his love for us and his forgiveness of the cross.

Not a good works as good as that may be you can get saved by sacrifices want to Jesus.

That is the reason he's bringing this young man to the point of the realization of what his problem is and the key issue in his life was that his well now possessed him, and he was attached to it in such a fashion that he wouldn't lay it down given away in order to receive the one thing he said in life.

He was lacking will misconception number one in the Sabre keep the 10 commandment. You cannot misconception number two you can be saved by sacrificing everything, having giving to the poor good works you cannot, then the third misconception is a wealthy man can't be saved.

That's not what Jesus is saying no doubt he is saying look. He says it is hard for a rich man to be saved and then he illustrates it this way you heard all kinds of interpretations about this are the needle some you for this interpretation. What that means is this, it means that in those days that cities will wall they had a main gate for all the traffic and all the business went through and those gates were closed at night for protection, but those people who were outside the gate. There was little Berber small gate that a person could get through after the gate was locked at night and usually was going to get so small that you have to sort of a been a little bit to get through our you may have heard this way that the that small gate was small enough for a camel and it's only get three if you took all the baggage all the camel and he just don't get on his knees and weaseled his way through what that says is if that's the right interpretation. Jesus is his hard-core rich man to be saved but he can weaseled his way through if he manipulates is what his life enough so what it means, then what did Jesus mean human exec 40 said that is impossible for a rich man begin the kingdom of God when he is depending upon his wealth and his power to make him acceptable in the eyes of God. So when he said in this verse. He says if you notice in verse 26, with men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.

What is impossible, it is impossible for a person to get to heaven depending on anything they possess, or anything that they are apart from a relationship to God. So just saying well you know if you get off enough of the sub baggage, you'll be able weaseled their way through us know what it means and that's crystal clear. He says I'm looking upon them. He said, with men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible. What's the right solution is the right solution.

The great question is what can I do to inherit eternal life. The great deception is somehow be sufficient to work hard enough. The gobble except me the right solution is faith in Jesus Christ is the only means of acceptance in the eyes of God. What's the great tragedy here is all wrapped up in one verse look at this verse 22 says that when the young man heard the statement he went away, grieved, for he was one who owned much property. The Bible says that he walked away. Having come to Jesus and said this is one thing lacking in my life.

What is it I will eternal life.

What is it Jesus said but you trust in me, not your possessions. Put all that aside and come, follow me to see the reason Jesus said that there was because he knew that was his problem that is not the way to get say was the great tragedy is the great tragedy.

This young man made this decision is life is the tragic decision that so many people make in life. He tried to hold on to what he could not keep, and rejected what he could not lose it tried to hold on to what he could not keep, and rejected what he could not lose. He asked for eternal life and he said this is it. He turned it down.

The material wealth. Let me ask a question if you've never trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior.

Be honest. If you never trusted Jesus as your Savior.

There is something between you and God is something you will lay down something you want to run away from something you won't give up. It may be your doubt. It may be some activity.

It could be pride. Nobody is going to tell me what to do on will be mild man. I'm going to be my own woman about his don't tell me what to do. It could be a pride. It could be your wealth. But there is something you see anybody who rejects the gospel, anyone who rejects Jesus. There is a reason for it. Would you be honest enough to ask yourself this question, what is the real reason that I will receive eternal life is a lot I do still believe all that the great question is how to live have eternal life.

The great deception is I can do without God, the great solution is that Jesus is the only way in the great tragedy is that you may having heard the truth would turn away and lose your opportunity for eternal life. Thank you for listening to good but not good enough. If you like to know more about child family more intense ministries, intense tantalizing. This podcast is a presentation of intense ministries Atlanta